Dovetailed Hand Tool Cabinet

I’ve slowly built my hand tool arsenal up over the past year. Unfortunately, I didn’t have anywhere to put most of my new tools. I saw an article in the last issue of ShopNotes for a tool cabinet and it sparked my interest. I was originally going to build that exact cabinet, but as the project progressed, I found my Krenovian muse and let the project “go with the flow”.
I remember the first time that I read James Krenov’s “A Cabinetmaker’s Notebook...

When I first started working on my Roubo workbench, I was given the advice to buy 2×12 lumber, rip the sides off to use to laminate the top, and then toss the pith section from the middle into the scrap bin. Needless to say, I ended up with a lot of pith scrap. The idea as I understood it is that the pith section is the least stable and to have it used in the bench top (or other critical parts of the bench) could lead the problems later.
Pith scrap end grain:
I did use some of ...

While the pieces for the back were clamped / glued up, I spent some time practicing hand cut through dovetails for my next project. I had cut some where between 6 – 12 single tail practice dovetails off an on over the past 6 months or so. I’d never tried cutting an actual “set”; as in more than one tail and at least 3 pins (counting 2 half pins).
Well after cutting a practice set, I decided that the only way I was ever going to get any good at them was to use them m...

As I got further into the build process, I found myself really starting to fly by the seat of my pants. I really had a lot of fun working on the tool holders. This was the design process: grab the next tool, look at it a bit, pass it from one hand to another, and finally get an idea.
For the most part, I liked my first idea and went with it. The one area that I had to revisit and revamp several times was the holders for my joinery saws. I am happy with the set up that I eventually settled ...

I didn’t take too many pictures on the day that I built the door frame. This is particularly because it was the first time that I made a frame using half lap joints and I completely hate them and never want to use them again because they make me feel completely incompetent.
I did everything the way I normally do to cut a clean, square shoulder and cheek; just like when I cut tenons. I made sure the lumber was flat and square. I used the reference face and edge to score the lines to d...